Tech

5 Can't-Miss Apps: Next Music Discovery and More

5 Can't-Miss Apps

Retro for Instagram

For all its popularity and new features, Instagram still lacks a native iPad app. While some users may not mind using a blown-up version of the iPhone app, Retro’s Instagram viewer has been a great platform that works just as well as the native app. This week, Retro upgraded to version 2.0, and with it came a new user interface, as well as faster and more responsive design. The app is free, but a $2.99 in-app purchase gets you support for multiple accounts and access to your photo’s stats. Retro is available for iPad.

Next — Social Music Discovery

Next’s music-discovery app emphasizes sharing your finds with your network. The app provides a stream of short videos featuring other users playing their favorite songs, and also lets you upload your own performances. Those who are more interested in discovering can browse new music by theme and popularity among Next's users. The free app is available for iOS.

Notifyr

Notifyr enables users to view all of their iPhone’s push notifications on their Mac's desktop, so they can read essays, and see incoming tweets and Facebook messages, without ever unlocking their phone. The $3.99 app pairs over Bluetooth to minimize battery drain. It is compatible with the iPhone 4S and later, as well as most Macs from 2011 and later. Notifyr is available for iOS.

PumpUp

PumpUp's fitness-coaching app came out of beta with a completely new design this week. The updated app has the same customized workouts and photo-sharing capabilities, but it also includes new social and weight-tracking features, gesture-based controls and new ways to set goals. The free app is available for iOS and Android.

Scout GPS, Maps, Voice Navigation & Traffic

Scout, the popular GPS navigation app from Telenav, released some big news this week. While on its surface, the app doesn’t look very different, Scout announced this week that it was becoming completely open source. One of the first third parties to be involved is Strava, which will integrate Scout’s maps into its running and cycling apps. Scout is available for iOS and Android.

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